Immersion Week-Walking Chicago
Immersion week has been a great introduction to the city of Chicago, and I have learned a lot about the different communities that live here. I think having to be on foot so much as a group was a helpful way to connect both with each other and with the city around us. Tuesday was the first day we left Lincoln Park, and while it was a very long day, exploring the different neighborhoods along division street was a really good way of exploring the dynamic between different communities.
This photo was taken while we were walking through Gold Coast. We learned that it is one of the richest neighborhoods in the country, and it was cool to hear about all the celebrities that have lived there in the past. Throughout the day, we went through Old Town, Cabrini Green, Goose Island, Wicker Park, and a few other neighborhoods leading up to Humboldt Park. I noticed a very clear difference between Gold Coast and some of the less developed areas. When we reflected on this as a group, we noted that the poor communities seemed more close-knit whereas in Gold Coast there were very few people outside of their houses. On Wednesday, when we were gardening in Garfield Park, it was clear that everyone in the community helped each other out. Minnie’s work with the garden is extremely admirable, and I like that everyone works together to help maintain the community space. Before we started our walk, we did the 360 Chicago Experience at the John Hancock building.
Seeing the city from above was a great way to go into the week because it gave us a beautiful overview before we experienced a lot of it on foot. While it was pretty to see it from so high up, walking through so many different areas taught me so much more about the history, culture, and relationships in each new place. This shows the value of experiencing new things for yourself instead of judging them on face value. If I hadn’t taken this class, I would not have made the trip to half of these places, and I am grateful for everything we learned while we explored them. The last two days of the week, we were lucky enough to have tour guides to teach us about the history of the towns we were in (Bronzeville and Pilsen). Pilsen was one of my favorite places we went to because there was so much art and history to explore.
I took this picture because the mosaics in Pilsen were impressive. They take so much time to create, and they say so much about the history of the Mexican American community. We also got to view many of the murals done by local artists, and it adds so much character to the streets. This was the same reason I really enjoyed the Puerto Rican community because a lot of their history is displayed on extensive murals.
We got to explore so many different places within these short five days that it made it feel like I have been living here for so much longer than I have. Overall, I have learned so much about the different areas in Chicago through their architecture, people, history, and so much more. I cannot wait to dive deeper into the topics we have already touched on and spend more time exploring Chicago.
